Chiefs keep playoff hopes alive by beating Bastrop

The West Ouachita boys basketball team kept its Class 4A playoff hopes alive Tuesday with a 63-55 win over Bastrop.

Jakob Rowton scored a game-high 22 poins and Saxton Becker added 18 points for the Chiefs who made 18-of-24 free throw attempts, including 14-of-18 in the fourth quarter to pull away.

“We had a big lead and then we got rattled at the end a little bit,” West Ouachita coach Josh Brown said. “Free throws were huge for us, because if we don’t make free throws at the end as well as Bastrop began to play. Our guys are determined to win, they are going to win any way that they can.”

Bastrop was also solid at the free throw line, but got to the charity stripe at a lesser clip, making 5-of-6 at the line.

“Free throws,” Bastrop coach Theabury Odom said. “(West Ouachita) got to shoot a lot and we didn’t. We didn’t get to the free throw line as often. I thought the game was won and lost at the free throw line. I am really proud of my guys for the way they fought. I just hate it for my seniors that we had to go out like that.”

Elliot Thompson led Bastrop with 14 points.

West Ouachita led by as many as 11 points in the second half before Bastrop began to chip away.

Bastrop made it a 58-52 game with 44 seconds remaining, but Becker helped the Chiefs close it out at the charity stripe.

Bastrop came into the week ranked No. 31 and West Ouachita at No. 34. West Ouachita still has a home game against Wossman on Friday that will determine their playoff fate while the Rams are done in district play and will have to wait to find out if they play on.

“We just have to wait,” Odom said.

Connect with Cody on Twitter @cfutrellTNS or via e-mail cfutrell@thenewsstar.com